Abandoned luggage causes "bomb panic" at the Senate on Thursday, January 19

Philstar.com reports that "suspicious-looking luggage" that was found a few meters outside the Senate building caused panic hours before the resumption of the impeachment trial of Chief Justice Renato Corona on Thursday, January 19.

Philstar.com reports that "suspicious-looking luggage" that was found a few meters outside the Senate building caused panic hours before the resumption of the impeachment trial of Chief Justice Renato Corona on Thursday, January 19.

The report revealed: "Julio Tiston of the Philcare janitorial services said they found a hard case with tripod in front of the Senate building around 5:45 a.m. but they assumed the bag was owned by one of the television networks covering the trial. Antonio Goncero Jr. of the Office of the Senate Sergeant-at-Arms said they were informed about the abandoned luggage at 8 a.m. but waited for members of the press to claim it before reporting the incident."

When nobody claimed the luggage, the Senate’s security personnel and the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team cordoned off the area around it. The report then noted: "According to Senate Police Security chief inspector Jose Go, the case tested negative for explosives and only contained cables after the SWAT-Explosive Ordnance Division K9 unit inspected it."

The report said the bomb scare was declared "a false alarm" by 1:30 p.m.